2 Houston groups snag arts awards

The Houston Arts Alliance awarded its first Jamail Innovation Grants to Writers in the Schools and Main Street Theatre, giving each group $50,000 over two years to break new ground in its field.

Randall Jamail, producer and founder of Justice Records, funds this grant to give organizations an opportunity to find creative and innovative solutions that better the art and culture community.

"Funds are pretty tight in respect to most arts and cultural organizations. This grant is really going to help organizations move the needle on innovative projects that otherwise wouldn't get the opportunity to be," said Richard Graber, director of grants, programs and services for Houston Art Alliance.

Four panelists selected the winners from 17 applicants. Writers in the Schools will use its money to expand a video game system it is using to encourage older students' writing and problem-solving skills, while Main Street Theatre will create a costume-sharing facility what will benefit theater companies across the city.

The two "were a great balance for something very digital and very analog," said panelist Neville Vakharia, an assistant professor and research director for Drexel University's Arts Administration Graduate Program. "I find that innovation doesn't always have to be technology driven, it could also be doing something new and impactful. Both organizations were a great balance."

Writers in the Schools , which focuses on improving students' reading and writing skills, is partenering with Histrionix learning company to introduce a video gaming concept for kids in fifth grade through high school. The program presents each student a historical scenario in which they must develop their own stories and solutions. Afterward, they are given the opportunity to learn about game design by creating landscapes and characters. Games are published on the website and are open for other gamers to play and add suggestions.

"In this project, kids are stepping out from being just consumers of media," said Robin Reagler, executive director of Writers in the Schools. "Kids are in the driver's seat where they are making the media and understanding it from a totally different point of view. I find that it is very empowering for them."

This is the first year the program will be available to the public and students will have the opportunity to submit their games to the National Science Technology and Math Challenge. Submissions will be reviewed by video game designers and winners will be flown to Washington D.C. to play their game with President Barack Obama.

The grant will allow the program to expand to more students by training additional educators to teach this workshop, said Reagler. Writers in the Schools works with more than 36,000 students each year, but so far only 330 have had access to this program in the two-year pilot.

Main Street Theatre's proposal would create a storage facility for costume sharing that can be utilized by local non-profit theatres and dance studios across Houston to save time and money, organizers said.

Rebecca Udden, a co-founder and artistic director of Main Street Theatre, has been battling Houston weather and its effects on costumes for some time. She says this idea is long overdue.

"Nobody has air conditioned, climate controlled storage for costumes," said Udden. "In Houston, summers can cause severe damage to our costume selection. We have to throw away so many pairs of shoes due to mildew and this storage facility will make an impact on how many costumes we save."

Main Street Theatre partners will partner with The Ensemble Theatre, Theatre Lab Houston, Mildred's Umbrella Theatre Company, among many other local organizations.

Through this grant, Udden predicts the project can start making its impact within six months.

"My interest originally was in costuming, and this idea has been floating around in my mind for so long," said Udden. "I just feel that if we all went into it together it could be better."